The Only Exception
by SomewhereOnlySheKnows
Summary: After eleven years of aiding her dying Mother all on her own, Zelda loses her. She is forced, much to her chagrin, to reconnect and live with her estranged father and his new family. When she moves in, she meets someone unexpected: What will happen when these two realize that they are more alike than they originally thought?
1. Chapter 1 -Where it Began-

**When I was younger I saw my daddy cry**  
**and curse at the wind.**

_"Damn it Irene!" Father cursed as he smashed a plate on the floor. I cowered further into my corner, the only place I felt safe. Mother sobbed._

**He broke his own heart and I watched**  
**as he tried to reassemble it.**

_"Daphnes…" she quivered. I could see her try to move towards him in the reflection of the hall mirror. He fliched, and stormed out of the room. "Please… let me explain."_

**And my momma swore**  
**that she would never let herself forget.**

_The screaming continued late into the night. Father would yell, Mother would cry, and I'd huddle closer and closer into the corner. It was supposed to be a happy day. It was my birthday after all…_

**And that was the day that I promised**  
**I'd never sing of love if it does not exist.**

They didn't last much longer after that night. Father eventually left, and Mother still struggled with her illness. I'd always pictured them as the perfect parents. They used to smile, laugh and dance to no music. But that was in happy times, but that all died that day. And when their love died, so did mine.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: So sorry about the confusion with the update! I accidentally uploaded the same chapter twice and I immediately deleted it. So it said there was a new chapter when there wasn't. And then it was being slow, really slow. But, here it is at long last! Please enjoy!**

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"Zelda!" my father called. I heard the door creak and eventually click shut. I'm surprised he even came into the house… let alone remembered it was still here.

"Zelda!" he was coming up the stairs now, they also creaked with age. I left my room, suitcase in tow, and met him and the top of the stairs.

"Yes?" I said exasperated. He was really trying my patience.

"Oh!" he seemed surprised "You're ready!"

"As I'll ever be…" I muttered. I followed him down the stairs and stopped short. "Wait. I need to grab something." I trotted back up the stairs, not waiting for his response.

"I'll be your stuff in the car!" he called after me. Whatever.

I entered my mother's room. Goddesses, I haven't been in here since she died.

'_I'm not gonna cry' _I told myself as I maneuvered through covered furniture and boxes to the closet. I remembered that I had stored some of my things in here and I sure as hell didn't want to forget them. My piano music. My only saving grace as of right now. I blew off some of the dust that formed from lack of use these past few months. I'd been so busy taking care of my mother, then planning her funeral and then packing everything up that was either being donated or pitched. Placing the music in my bag, I shuffled out of the closet.

_"Okay," _I mentally told myself while picking lint out of my hair. "_am I forgetting anything now?"_ And that's when I spotted it. Way in the back corner.

"What's this?" I mused aloud. I croushed down and grabbed the box and tugged it out. It seemed like an ordinary shoebox, but filled to the brim with, for lack of a better word, junk. _Hmm… _I mused. _Better take this with me_.

Now that I had everything, I made my way back through the maze of furniture and boxes, and gently closed the door behind me. The realization that I would never come back here hit me really hard. For all the bad things that had happened in this house, there were some good ones too. Like this one dent in the wall, that's from when my Father and I had been playing "Horsie" and he ran into it. Mother had been angry at first, but eventually said that the dent "added character" to the hallway. Even the finger prints on the wall leading down the stairs had a story to tell. To this day I still use both the banister and the wall to support myself for fear of slipping and falling down the stairs. I smiled to myself remembering these fond things.

"Now are you ready?" my Father said. I hadn't realized I had reached the landing and was now standing with my Father looking like an idiot smiling to myself. I frowned.

"I'll take that as a yes." He awkwardly motioned to the door. He was never good at talking with me. I was "too much like my Mother" as he put it recently. Taking one last look at the inside of the home I would never return too, I followed him out the door.


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: Here's a longer one! Hope you enjoy! Oh and I'd greatly appreciate it if you could review? Thanks!

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It wasn't until well into the ride until Father tried to speak to me again.

"Was that one suitcase the only one you had?" he said motioning to the back of the car. "I want to make sure before we get too far away to turn back."

I responded with a curt "yes."

"Oh…" he trailed off and nervously ran his hands along the steering wheel. "Well it might be a good thing then…"

My head whipped around to face him "What?" I asked, surprised and angered at the same time. How could only having to use one suitcase to fit all your clothes be a good thing?

"Well, you see…" He attempted to rectify what he just said. Like he'd be able to do that. "Lynn actually went out and bought you some clothes…"

My eyes widened. "Lynn?" Who in the Dark Realm is Lynn? My mind was reeling as he continued

"Lynn is your new mother-"

"No one, and I mean no one, will replace Mother." I seethed. Now he's really done it. My Father sighed.

"Lynn is my new wife. She went out of her way to try and make your room feel as much as home as possible, and that includes buying you new clothes so you'd fit in." Again, my eyes widened.

"Fit in?" What in the Goddesses is going on?

"We live in a very prominent neighborhood, looks are everything." He smiled to himself, obviously thinking about his home and new family. The jerk.

"You sure don't look like you live there." I snorted triumphantly. And I was right. Though my Father seemed to once be a handsome man, you could tell life had caught up to him. His black hair was greying, and as of right now he was wearing jeans and a pullover sweatshirt. He just glared at me in response and muttered something under his breath. "Huh? What was that?!" I asked.

He sighed, turning on the turn signal. "I said 'Just like Irene' if you must know." He then proceeded to turn and stop before a huge gated community.

"Hello Mr. Nohansen." The man at the booth told my Father.

"Gremen, haven't I told you a thousand times to just call me Daphnes?" my Father laughed. I crossed my arms under my chest.

"I know, I know." Gremen waved, dismissing it. "I just like to see you get riled up over the formalities. It was then that I guessed he noticed me. "Wait, is that one of Lynn's girls?" I snorted.

"No, this is Zelda. From my first wife Irene."

Gremen tsked. "Now I remember. Again I'm sorry to hear about her man."

"It's been tough" he said. Anger flared within me. _How in the Dark Realm could it be tough on HIM? He didn't have to care for her or see her die a little bit everyday! He just up and left! By gods he ddin't know she was dying until she was already dead!_

"-you to the neighborhood." I snapped back to reality.

"What?" I asked turning to face Gremen. He was a man of about forty, younger than Father. He had a mole on his cheek that was so prominent that I caught myself staring.

"Zelda." My Father scolded me.

"Sorry I didn't hear what Mr…?" I looked at the gate keeper (not his mole).

"Oh it's Mr. Moore. Or just Gremen if you'd like. And I said that I'd like to be the first to welcome you to the neighborhood."

"Ah." I nodded. "And this neighborhood is?" Father gawked. Gremen laughed.

"Well, it's Ordonan Acres of course! The finest mansions of this side of Hytleton!" Gremen puffed his chest and smiled with pride. Jeez, he was arrogant.

"Um… thanks I guess?" I replied. That made Gremen even happier.

"I'll see you around Gremen, or is it Mr. Moore?" Father laughed as he pulled away, Gremen shaking his fist in the air after us while laughing slightly. He then turned his attention to me, well slightly because he was driving,

"That was incredibly rude." Was all he said.

"What?" I asked genuinely surprised. I could have gone crazy and screamed and thrashed about or even jumped out of the care and run all the way back home!

"You completely ignored Mr. Moore when he was welcoming you here." He was beginning to get angry. "No daughter of mine will act like that.

I scoffed. "Well, I am not a daughter of yours because clearly you deserted Mother and I a long time ago. And secondly how in the Dark Realm could Mother's death be hard for you?! You never once checked in after you left." By now we had pulled into the driveway of a "mansion". I could have puked from the amount of snobbishness it exuded.

"Don't you dare raise your voice or question me young lady." I slammed the door shut and made my way to the trunk. "And don't, not even for one second, think that Irene's death didn't hurt me." We both heard another car pull up and doors open.

"Daphnes!" a male voice called over.

"We are not finished with this conversation, Zelda." Father glared at me before turning to the man. "Lincoln! How was the trip?"

"It could have been better…" as he said this three little devils came bursting out of the car.

"I won!"

"Nuh uh!"

"Yes, he did."

"NO HE DIDN'T!"

"OI!" Lincoln yelled. "Stop it before you're all grounded!"

"He started it!

"No she did!"

"NO!"

"Yes!"  
"GET INSIDE!" Lincoln bellowed. The siblings all ran to the door and scurried inside. Boy, even I was a little scared by his yell. Lincoln turned back to my Father. "Oh, I see you went and brought Zelda home!" I glared at my Father. _Does everyone in this gods damned neighborhood know about me?!_ I slammed the trunk shut. Three more figures emerged from the car, an older woman, who I assumed was Lincoln's wife, a girl who looked about my age, and then a boy, who seemed to be older. They all looked towards me. I feigned pleasantries until my eyes caught hold of the boy's gaze. It literally was piercing, and made me extremely uncomfortable. I fetched my piano music out of the front seat, slamming the door.

"If you don't mind, _Father_," my voice dripped sweetly with venom. He began to glare at me. Í will be going inside now." With that I turned on my heel, bypassing the woman exiting my new house and slammed the door shut.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter! I greatly appreciate it :D I hope you enjoy this chapter! I had planned on it being much longer, but then it did not flow as nicely as I had hoped it would. So please R&R!

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It wasn't that long after my polite exit that Father came into the house. I of course, had no idea where I was going and had only just stopped at the foot of the stairs, confused beyond belief at the sheer size of everything.

"You know," he laughed, closing and locking the door. I didn't dare turn around. "you really amaze me sometimes. I didn't raise you that way."

"That's because you didn't raise me at all." I turned around. He seemed caught off guard. It was then that I noticed the woman standing next to him, holding the box I had found in Mother's old room. "You left us. So don't think for one second that you can tell me what to do." I smiled walking forward and taking the box rather forcefully from the woman. I started for the stairs again.

"It's to the right." Was all she said. I turned to face her, confused.

"Excuse me?"

"Your new room." She smiled. It sickened me. "It's to the right at the top of the stairs, at the very end of the hallway.

"Oh." Was all I could reply.

"And I'm Lynn." She walked forward and extended her hand. "I hope we can become really close. I'm very happy that you're here, it's all Daphnes has been able to talk about." Again, she smiled.

"Really…" I replied, taking her hand and looking towards Father. "that's nice." I smiled my own little smile, turning for the last time and finally heading upstairs.

I followed her advice and veered right. I passed a few rooms, most of which seemed to be guest rooms, before stopping at a slightly ajar door. I heard giggles, and was curious. _I guess this is the girls' room_ I mused before nudging the door open a little more. I was partly right; there were only two beds, and two girls peering out of the window. One had red hair that was clearly artificial and the other had blue hair, again, clearly artificial. It took the awhile to realize that they were being watched.

"Who are you?" the red head said rudely, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Yeah?" the blue haired girl imitated.

"Uh, a new family member?" I said. _Duh._

"Oh," the both said, looking me up and down. "You must be Zelde."

"It's Zelda, with an a." I rolled my eyes. _Preteens, they think that they're all that._

"Whatever," the red head turned back to the window. "We're busy right now, so leave us be."

"Yeah," the blue haired girl stuck her tongue out at me. "Leave us be." And turned to the window with her sister.

"What could you be so busy with when looking out the window?" I walked to the window, shoving them aside. I then noticed what it was they were giggling at. It was the guy. He was in his family's backyard, playing fetch with a dog while the three little ones ran around. They seemed to be enjoying themselves…

"Move out of the way!" The blue head pushed me back. "He's ours!"

"Yours?" I raised an eyebrow. "How is he yours?"

"Leave!" The red head shot back in reply. "Before I call mother!"

"Fine…" I left the window and headed back to the hallway. The blue haired girl followed and slammed the door as soon as I left. "jeez. Bratty much?" I muttered to myself. And I continued down the hall. I passed by another room, decked out in many shades of pink, with a little girl of about six or seven sitting on the floor. She looked up when I paused at the door.

"You must be Zelda." She said innocently.

"How'd you know?" I asked incredulously.

"I heard Lydin and Naydin yelling at you. I'm Claydin." She smiled and went back to doing whatever it was that she was doing.

_"Huh", _I mused. "_weird kids…"_ and continued to the door at the very end of the hall. Kicking it open with my foot, (a very bad habit of mine) I slowly entered, taking in my surroundings. And my surroundings were… flawless. It was a beautiful room, decorated in soft purples and light greens. "_I wonder how they knew my favorite colors_." Venturing further into the room I noticed I had my own balcony. "_No way!"_ I immediately headed towards it, throwing open the doors and letting the sun hit my pale skin. I smiled, it was such a nice feeling.

"Well," a feminine voice said from behind me. "I'm glad you like your new room!" I turned suddenly. It was my Father's new wife, _Lynn_.

"Yeah." Was all I replied, coming back in from the balcony and closing the door behind me.

"Have you looked in the closet yet? The bathroom?" Lynn clasped her hand under her chin and smiled. "I really hope they're to your liking."

"Umm, no." I walked to what I thought to be the closet. I was right. "I guess I'll look now." Of course, like my bedroom, they were amazing. Not that'd I'd ever admit that to her.

When I came back out from exploring, Lynn was sitting on my queen sized bed (Which by the way, is awesome also).

"I really hope you come to like living with us." She took my hand when I was in her reach. "Your Father was beyond pleased to know that you'd be coming here." Lynn gave said hand a light squeeze.

"Yeah…" I trailed off. _Why is she so concerned? _

"I hope you don't mind, I know you just moved in and all," Lynn was now standing and off towards my closet "but we've invited the neighbors over for dinner. It is a little tradition we have around here." She smiled. "So I'm here to help you pick something out!" And thus began the whirlwind until dinner.


End file.
